Mayweather vs. Pacquiao Odds: Analyzing Best Bets for Superfight

According to Odds Shark, the most probable result for the May 2 superfight between Floyd Mayweather Jr. vs. Manny Pacquiao is an unanimous-decision win for the former.

Mayweather is listed as the 12-25 favorite to win. Regardless of the winner, the odds are set favorably that the fight will go the distance. The fractional odds there are 33-100.

Oddsmakers don't give Mayweather much of a chance to win by KO. In fact, aside from a draw (14-1), Money's odds of stopping Pacquiao are the longest of any potential outcome at 11-2.

If bettors want to play things as safe as possible, they can simply go for Mayweather by decision, but it's obvious that those wagers aren't likely to render big payouts. If someone wanted to gamble just a bit, they could bet on Mayweather to win by KO.

The odds are long, but there is expert opinion that encourage that wager. In an interview with Fight Hype, former world champion and Showtime boxing analyst Paulie Malignaggi says he'll be shocked if the fight is close, and he also believes Mayweather can stop Pacquiao.

That's just one man's documented opinion, but there have been others who also believe Money can and may want to make a statement in the most high-profile fight in the history of the sport.

We don't know how Money will handle Pacquiao's speed and his power punches from a southpaw stance. If he can time Pacquiao by the fourth round and find a home for the straight right-hand lead, Mayweather will have laid the foundation for a more aggressive attack later in the fight.

If he can frustrate Pacquiao, he may be able to lure him into a more reckless approach. That might open Pacquiao up for a hard counter punch, much like the one that Juan Manuel Marquez used to knock him out.

The more radical and potentially more fruitful wager would be to take Pacquiao to win. Some might believe Pacquiao's best chance to win is to stop Mayweather, but the odds (15-4 over 4-1) say a win by unanimous decision is more likely.

Mayweather only won one of his last three fights by unanimous decision. That says that his style is being judged a bit more negatively of late. When Pacquiao is right, his activity is among his best attributes. If he can keep a high work rate for 12 rounds, he'll drastically increase his chances of winning the fight by decision.

There's less than a week left before it all goes down and all the speculation comes to an end. No matter the outcome, this is going to be big.

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